# Install dmtx-utils with Homebrew, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix

Read and write data matrix barcodes. Version 0.7.6 via Homebrew; verified 2026-07-10. Also installable with debian: sudo apt install dmtx-utils.

## Install

```sh
sudo av install brew:dmtx-utils
```

Additional install commands:

### macOS

- Homebrew (100%):

```sh
brew install dmtx-utils
```

  Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata

- MacPorts (94%):

```sh
sudo port install dmtx-utils
```

  Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: graphics/dmtx-utils/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1

### Linux

- Debian apt (92%):

```sh
sudo apt install dmtx-utils
```

  Evidence: Debian stable package indexes: dmtx-utils from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz

- dnf (92%):

```sh
sudo dnf install dmtx-utils
```

  Evidence: Fedora Rawhide package metadata: dmtx-utils from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/07190dc5ae9f35ae73866675fed6d95fe6e8d9fe22c9d7cdf85862cb2ed24a4c-primary.xml.zst

- Nix (92%):

```sh
nix profile install nixpkgs#dmtx-utils
```

  Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/dm/dmtx-utils/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1

## Package facts

- **Package key:** brew:dmtx-utils
- **Package manager:** Homebrew
- **Version:** 0.7.6
- **Source summary:** Read and write data matrix barcodes
- **Homepage:** <https://github.com/dmtx/dmtx-utils>
- **Repository:** <https://github.com/dmtx/dmtx-utils>
- **Last updated:** 2026-07-10T19:03:07-04:00
- **Generated:** 2026-08-03T19:37:03+00:00

## Executables

- dmtxquery (alias)
- dmtxread (alias)
- dmtxwrite (alias)

## Install behavior

- Bottle: not available

## Freshness

- Page generated: 2026-08-03
- Package-manager version: 0.7.6
## Project history and usage

dmtx-utils is the command-line companion package for libdmtx, the open-source Data Matrix barcode library. It gives shell scripts and terminal users direct access to libdmtx encoding, decoding, and query behavior through tools such as dmtxread and dmtxwrite.

### Project history

The project split the utility programs from the core libdmtx library while keeping the same ecosystem: libdmtx provides the native library, and dmtx-utils provides command-line programs for the modern ECC200 Data Matrix barcode format. The libdmtx site now points maintainers and users to the dmtx GitHub organization.

### Adoption history

The utilities have stayed attractive to Unix package managers because they turn barcode read/write functionality into normal pipeline components. That makes Data Matrix generation and scanning available to packaging scripts, QA jobs, labels, and batch image workflows without writing against the C API.

### How it is used

The README shows dmtxwrite taking messages from standard input or files and producing barcode images, while dmtxread reverses images back into messages. It also demonstrates chaining the two tools in a pipeline, which is exactly the kind of shell-native workflow package maintainers like.

### Why package nerds care

dmtx-utils is notable because it packages a graphics/barcode library as small composable CLI tools. For distro maintainers, it is a tidy example of a library-plus-utils split where the tools are both useful to users and a reference for library behavior.

### Timeline

- 0.7.x: dmtx-utils is maintained as the utility package for the libdmtx ecosystem.
- 2019: The libdmtx site notes maintenance by the dmtx GitHub team.

### Related projects

- libdmtx is the underlying Data Matrix library.
- dmtx-wrappers provides language bindings around the same library family.

### Sources

- <https://github.com/dmtx/dmtx-utils>
- <https://libdmtx.org/>
- <https://github.com/dmtx/libdmtx>


## Security Notes

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.

- **Geiger risk:** green / low
- narrow executable package without higher-risk signals

## Other Package-Manager Records

- Debian apt - dmtx-utils - 0.7.6-1.1+b4: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dmtx-utils from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | Utilities for reading and writing Data Matrix 2D barcodes | http://libdmtx.sourceforge.net
- Nix - dmtx-utils: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/dm/dmtx-utils/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1
- Ubuntu apt - dmtx-utils - 0.7.6-1.1build4: normalized package name match | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: dmtx-utils from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz | Utilities for reading and writing Data Matrix 2D barcodes | http://libdmtx.sourceforge.net
- dnf - dmtx-utils - 0.7.6-25.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: dmtx-utils from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/07190dc5ae9f35ae73866675fed6d95fe6e8d9fe22c9d7cdf85862cb2ed24a4c-primary.xml.zst | Tools for working with Data Matrix 2D bar-codes | https://github.com/dmtx
- MacPorts - dmtx-utils: normalized package name match | MacPorts ports tree: graphics/dmtx-utils/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1


## Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/dmtx-utils.yml](https://github.com/mxcl/pkgdb/blob/main/combined/dmtx-utils.yml)


## Sources

- pkg.so package database
- Geiger risk classifier
- curated package history
- pkgdb category and tag curation
- external package-manager database matches
- cross-ecosystem install command graph
